Best Laid Plans
by Kiwi1
Summary: Henry attempts a magical parent trap and meddles where he shouldn't. Emma pays the price. Swan Queen, as always.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Once Upon a Time does not belong to me.**

_I guess you can class this as an AU, set after the return from Neverland._

* * *

Emma"! Henry's loud yell had her wincing. "Gram and Gramps are here to pick us up". She could hear the telltale thumps of him charging up the stairs.

"Wow, Henry. I don't think they heard you in Boston". Emma finished slipping on her heels, just as he arrived in the doorway of her room. She straightened up and struck a fake model pose." So, how do I look?"

Henry scrunched up his nose in an expression that was all Regina. "All right". He said the two words like they were being tortured out of him and Emma had to bite back a laugh.

"Just all right? I think someone needs some lessons from Gramps Charming." Emma took two strides forward and wrapped an arm around his neck, pretending to give him a noogie. She changed it into a hug at the last moment and Henry relaxed into it instantly. Emma silently marvelled at the fact that hugs with her son were now an everyday occurrence. The kid was growing like a weed though. She'd noticed just the other day that Regina no longer had to bend to talk to him anymore, and she was sure in a few more years he would have outstripped both of them.

"Yeah yeah", Henry made a face as he drew back. "Here, you got to wear this". He shoved something into her hand.

Emma grimaced at the sprig of mistletoe. "Oh, no way, kid". It was bad enough that Mary Margaret had guilt tripped her into dressing up for this silly party. She absolutely drew the line at actually participating.

"C'mon Emma, you have to!" Henry pleaded, attempting his best puppy dog look. "It's tradition".

Apparently the mistletoe festival was a huge deal in the Enchanted Forest. It was a symbol of peace, and all who met under it agreed to put aside any enmity for this one night. Emma wasn't buying it though and just figured it was all just a big excuse for everyone to go around smooching each other.

"Nope. Not gonna happen". Emma tried to hand back the sprig and Henry dodged away. "Get back here you little shh..shrimp". Her threats fell on deaf ears as Henry laughed and dashed out the door. Damn annoying kid taking advantage of the fact that she couldn't chase him properly in high heels. She clenched her fist and then winced as she accidentally crushed the sharp end of the sprig into her palm. A tiny drop of blood welled up and Emma froze in place, her eyes briefly flashing pink. The sprig of crushed mistletoe fell from her suddenly slack hand, to lay forgotten on the floor.

"Emma, you ready to go?" Mary Margaret popped her head around the door. Emma blinked and turned to face her. "Oh, you look lovely". She stepped fully into the room, her face doing that soft adoring expression that made Emma simultaneously want to run away and curl up into a ball, all at the same time.

"Thanks". She smiled and allowed Mary Margaret to fuss over her. The knee length red dress she had on, was her concession for the night. The mistletoe festival was apparently not a skinny jeans and boots type of party.

"You look great too", Emma said, taking in the elegant cream dress, that stopped just above a pair of three inch white heels. The pronounced curve of her belly was clearly visible against the fabric. "Are you sure you should be wearing heels, though?"

"I'm pregnant, not incompetent", Mary Margaret instantly scowled. "I swear, between you and your father, the overbearing concern's been driving me absolutely nuts."

"Ok. Was just checking." Emma immediately put her hands up in surrender, trying to prevent a rant. Mary Margaret was like a ticking bomb at times and the smallest things could set her off. "Just let me grab my coat, and I'll be ready to go".

"Fine. I'll be waiting in the car", Mary Margaret huffed and stomped out of the room, her pregnant belly, making her gait less than graceful. Emma hurriedly grabbed her black pea coat from the closet and rushed after her, worried about Mary Margaret walking down the loft stairs alone. She needn't have bothered though as David was already hovering at the top. Mary Margaret shot him a dark look. She pointedly ignored his offered arm and grabbed the railing instead. David followed her like an eager puppy and continued to hover as Mary Margaret struggled into her coat. Emma winced at the increasingly irritated expression on the pregnant woman's face.

She flung an arm around Henry, who was patiently waiting downstairs and deliberately held him back, recognising the signs of an incoming Mary Margaret explosion. They usually blew over fairly quickly, but Emma wasn't going to get caught in the crossfire. _Sorry David, but you're taking one for the team tonight_.

Emma still didn't quite know how she felt about the pregnancy. Sure she was happy for them, but a part of her couldn't help feeling resentful, especially after Mary Margaret's confession in the Echo Caves. Emma still remembers being that kid who was sent away from her first family after they got pregnant with their own child. It sometimes made it hard to smile and share in Mary Margaret's obvious excitement and happiness about the pregnancy, when it felt like she was being replaced because she wasn't good enough. It also didn't help that Mary Margaret was pretty much having the equivalent of a celebrity pregnancy, so all milestones were publically celebrated.

The only person who seemed to notice her turmoil about her future sibling was Regina. Every time Mary Margaret made a pregnancy related announcement, she would feel Regina's gaze on her. She never said a word to Emma about it though. In fact the only times Regina ever acknowledged the pregnancy, was to make some sort of caustic comment needling Mary Margaret about the physical changes she was going through. Her latest offering involving a bloated puffer fish, had actually forced Emma to leave the room, because she couldn't hold in her laughter.

Mary Margaret had finally gotten her coat on, and David rushed to the door to hold it open for her. Emma waited a couple more seconds to be safe, before guiding Henry after the soon to be squabbling couple.

* * *

"Where's your mistletoe?" Henry frowned at Emma's outfit. Mary Margaret and David had already disappeared into the crowd at the town hall, whisked away on their seemingly endless schmoozing duties. Everyone was dressed in their Sunday best, sprigs of mistletoe pinned to their clothing, and as Emma suspected, there was a whole lot of hugging and kissing going on.

"Back at the apartment". Emma shrugged, her attention drawn away as a loud cheer went up from the crowd. One of the glowing berries on the huge mistletoe plant hanging in the centre of the room, had dimmed, releasing a cloud of fairy dust over the room.

"What?" Henry scrabbled at her coat, desperately trying to check under it. "No, you're supposed to be wearing it".

"Here's the thing, kid", Emma caught his hands. "I'm only here tonight because I wanted to support Mary Margaret. I'm really not all that into this whole mistletoe tradition."

"No! You're going to ruin everything!" Henry ripped his hands away from her.

It was Emma's turn to frown. The kid was way overreacting over something so trivial. "Hey, calm down. It's not the end of the world".

"Henry! What's the matter?"

That smoky alto voice could only belong to one person. Emma looked up to see Regina place a soothing hand on Henry's shoulder, her entire attention focused on him.

"Relax, Regina. He's upset because I'm not wearing mistletoe." Emma let her gaze drift over the other woman. "Something I see you've opted out of as well." Regina was wearing a simple black dress, that hugged her curves in all the right places. She looked beautiful and Emma snapped her mouth shut, before she blurted out something embarrassing like _wow_.

Regina glanced briefly at her, before shifting her gaze back to their son. "Henry?"

"We need to go back to the apartment." Henry's jaw set in determination. "Mom, can you drive us there please?" He looked beseechingly up at Regina.

"Woah there, Henry". Emma quickly intervened as she saw Regina's expression soften. The other woman had been way too lenient with Henry recently. It was understandable given what they'd been through in Neverland, but the kid was starting to take advantage. "We're not going back just to pick up some silly mistletoe".

"That wasn't just any mistletoe!" Henry burst out, anger clouding his features. "It's special. It was supposed to help you find your true love."

"What?" Emma's eye's widened and she forced herself not to take a step back. "How?"

"Grandpa Gold and Tinkerbell enchanted it". Henry said sullenly. "All it needs is fairy dust to activate it and you would have been able to see who your true love is".

Emma went very still as she struggled to contain the anger that flared up. She reminded herself that Henry was still a child, with a very simplistic black and white view of things.

"Henry, you've had first hand experience with the consequences of doing magic on someone without their permission". Regina's voice was firm as she turned him slightly to ensure that he met her gaze. "You know how that made you feel".

"This is good magic though. It's supposed to help. How can that be a bad thing?" Henry turned back to Emma, but made no move to escape the hand Regina had on his shoulder. "I thought if I could prove that he was your true love, you wouldn't be so scared to give my dad another chance."

"Henry, I don't need anything or anyone other than myself, deciding who I should love." Emma was careful to keep the anger she was feeling from bleeding into her voice. "Using magic in that way would take away my choice, since it's basically telling me who my true love is, without any input from me. I've had enough of other people making decisions for me and using fate as an excuse to dictate my life." She took a deep breath. The room suddenly seemed too small and she wanted out. "Look, I need some air. Regina, you good to keep Henry for a bit?" It was Emma's night with Henry and they were always especially careful to ask permission with any handovers to the other parent.

"Of course." Regina nodded, placing both her hands on Henry's shoulders. Tiny little lines were crinkling the corner of her eyes, the concern in them clearly evident. The fact that that concern was for her, was yet another thing putting Emma off balance.

"Ok". Emma ducked her head and turned away, intent on finding the nearest exit.

Henry's brow furrowed in confusion as he looked up at Regina. "I don't understand. Why wouldn't she want to know for sure who her true love is?"

Regina's eyes were focused on the door that Emma had disappeared through. The big vein on her forehead was clearly visible, which meant she was upset about something. Instead of answering his question though, she asked one of her own. "Henry, why are you so certain that Neal is Emma's true love?"

"One of the reasons Pan wanted me, was because my parents share true love. It was all written in a prophecy".

"A prophecy?"

"Yes, about the truest believer. Pan knew about me, from even before I was born. He even had a sketch of what I looked like. I'm meant to be a combination of the dark and light magic from my parents, and they're each other's true love". Henry wondered why his mom suddenly looked sad and defeated. He went over his last few words and winced when he realized that he had referred to Emma and Neal as his parents. He knew she was extra sensitive about stuff like that.

"Henry, regardless of this prophecy, there are some things that people like to figure out for themselves." Regina smoothed out his hair. "You need to let Emma and Neal work things out on their own.

Henry sighed. He still didn't get why Emma was so upset, but decided to let it go for now. "Ok mom. I just wanted to help".

"I know". Regina smiled down at him, but her eyes remained sad.

Henry turned and wrapped his arms around her middle, hugging her tightly. Regina didn't hesitate to return the hug, squeezing back just as hard. Henry closed his eyes and just enjoyed the feeling of warmth and safety that washed over him.

* * *

Emma stood at the window of an empty office overlooking the front steps of the town hall. She was starting to regret taking her heels off, as the cold from the floor was slowly seeping through her stockings. The heating wasn't turned on in the room, and Emma was definitely starting to feel it. Her coat was keeping the rest of her warm enough, but she found herself wishing for gloves as she rubbed irritably at her right hand. It had gone numb, and the tingling was spreading down her wrist.

Her thoughts once again drifted back to Henry. She couldn't believe what he'd had tried to do. Did he really want Neal and her together that desperately, that he would resort to using magic? It was bad enough that Mary Margaret kept pushing her towards Neal, even after she'd made it clear that she wasn't interested. Emma was actually starting to wonder if there was something else behind Mary Margaret's insistence that she give Neal another chance. Maybe she was embarrassed by Emma. Princesses don't usually have children out of wedlock after all, and they definitely don't end up sharing their son with the Evil Queen.

Emma sighed. Regina was on a whole other level of complicated. They had come to an understanding after the events in Neverland, where they both acknowledged the importance of the other in Henry's life. Sure, Regina could still be absolutely infuriating at times, especially when she was feeling threatened, but Emma felt an odd sense of normality with her. Regina never ever treated her as anything other than Emma Swan. She didn't have to put on the mantle of Saviour around her and it was surprisingly freeing. Recently though, things had started to shift between them. She had found herself increasingly caught up in brown eyes, that were filled with something Emma wasn't quite ready to acknowledge yet. If Henry was right about who her true love was though, she never ever would. She sucked in a breath at the sheer anguish that flooded her chest at the thought.

"Is the view really that riveting, or is there something else keeping you here?"

Emma jumped and spun around in surprise as Regina stepped into the room, shutting the door behind her. Her heels clicked loudly on the hardwood floor and Emma realized that she must have really been out of it if she hadn't heard her approach.

"Henry was starting to worry that something terrible had befallen you." Regina continued talking, unaware of how off balance Emma was feeling. She flicked on the light switch, and Emma winced at the sudden brightness.

"I'm starting to think he might be right". She glanced disdainfully at Emma's shoeless state, but obvious concern was crinkling the corners of her eyes again. Ok maybe she wasn't so unaware after all.

Emma gathered her heels up and fumbled with getting them back on her feet. She kept her head bent, using the action to rebuild her defences. "I just needed a couple of minutes. I'm fine now".

"You were standing shoeless, in the dark, in an unheated room. That's hardly indicative of someone who is _fine_, as you put it".

Emma responded with a tried and true distraction. "Where's Henry?"

"He's with your parents". Regina stopped a couple of feet away from her. She had both hands in the pockets of her black trench coat, and was obviously feeling the cold. "Henry insisted that I find you. You've been gone for the better part of an hour."

_An hour?_ Had it really been that long? Emma was careful to keep the surprise off her face. She straightened to her full height, having finally gotten both her shoes back on. "Well as you can see, I'm.."

"Fine." Regina finished for her and this time she rolled her eyes. "Yes, I believe we've already covered why your behaviour doesn't match that description."

Emma felt cornered, and lashed out before she could stop herself. "Look Regina, even if I wasn't fine, which I totally am by the way, you'd be the last person I would ever admit any weakness to". Emma instantly regretted her words as she saw hurt fill brown eyes, before Regina's mask slammed down.

"Be that as it may, Ms Swan, it's not me that you need to reassure, it's Henry. Your inclination to run whenever circumstances prove too much for you, is well known after all." Regina spun on her heel towards the door, silky dark hair performing a perfect flip.

_Shit_. Emma hadn't meant to hurt the other woman. "Regina no wait, please." She rushed after her and grabbed Regina's wrist, intent on stopping her from opening the door. A strange shock jolted up the arm she was touching Regina with. It felt like she'd knocked her funny bone against something, but about a hundred times worse. Emma had to grit her teeth in order to suppress a groan at the pain.

"Unhand me, Ms Swan". Regina said in a low dangerous growl.

Emma instantly let go of her and staggered back a few steps, clutching at her arm. "Jesus Regina, you didn't have to use magic on me". The pain wasn't showing any signs of stopping, if anything it was intensifying. "You can stop now, you know".

"Ms. Swan, I would think very carefully before making false accusations against me." Regina whirled around to face her, eyes blazing with hurt and fury. "We all know how well that ended the last time".

"Regina, I'm not kidding here." Emma was starting to feel lightheaded from the agony flaring along her arm. "Please, stop". She rotated her wrist upwards, hoping to ease the pain.

"What the hell is that?" The shock in Regina's voice made Emma look down at her hand. The veins on her palm were heavily distended and were glowing a strange pink colour, like someone had injected them with radioactive Kool-Aid. Each vein was clearly visible, creating a spiderweb of pink lines that spread all the way down her wrist and disappeared under her coat sleeve.

Cool fingers were suddenly holding her hand in a gentle grip. Emma hadn't even seen Regina move. "What did you do?"

"I didn't _do_ anything!" Emma said. She hunched over as a new wave of pain spread across her shoulders. Her head started to throb in time with her heartbeat. If Regina hadn't used magic on her, then there was something else going on.

Regina's other hand moved to her jaw and tilted it, exposing Emma's neck. Her sharp intake of breath was definitely not a good sign. "Whatever it is, it appears to be spreading rapidly". Those same soft fingers traced along Emma's neck and lower jaw.

"Do you remember coming into contact with anything magical today?"

"You mean aside from you, the fairy dust floating all over the place, and the many other...," Emma broke off and clutched at her head. It felt like someone was poking a hot poker into her eyelids. She barely noticed that she was leaning heavily against soft curves, as the edges of the room started to blur. "Regina, I think I need to sit down".

"Ms. Swan! Don't you dare pass out on me." Regina's voice seemed to be coming from far away. "Emma!" The fear in Regina's voice was the last thing Emma registered, before everything faded away.

* * *

**TBC**

_Happy New Year. Yeah it's been a while and I meant to get this done by Xmas, but circumstances and all that. The good news is that my thesis is due at the end of February, so that means I will hopefully have bit more time to dedicate to writing after that. The bad news is that my thesis is due at the end of February. I needed a break though, so I've set aside a couple of days for this story. I also really wasn't impressed with how the whole Robin Hood thing went down, and wanted to explore what the concept of choice meant for Emma and Regina._

_Also sorry for the reupload. I couldn't find the story when I first uploaded it, so ended up deleting it and reuploading. It also gave me a chance to change some stuff around that I wasn't happy with. Ah the joys of not having a beta._

_Reviews are much appreciated as per usual :)_


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Once Upon a Time does not belong to me. No profit is being made.**

* * *

Mary Margaret leaned against David, as they watched Gold examine the too still figure of her daughter lying in a hospital bed. Her stomach was churning, and the sick feeling could be traced back to the exact moment Regina had appeared in the middle of the town hall, with an unconscious Emma in her lap. Mary Margaret could still see the shocked and terrified expression on Whale's face, as Regina dragged him to her using magic, before teleporting all three of them to the hospital.

"Mom, is Emma going to be ok?" Henry's fingers tightened their grip on Regina's coat as he huddled against her. He hadn't left her side since he'd arrived at the hospital.

"If there's one thing I know for sure about Emma, is that she doesn't give up without a fight", Regina ran a soothing hand up and down Henry's arm. "I'm sure that she'll be up and about in not time". Regina never once took her eyes of off Gold. The glass wall of the hospital room Emma was in made his every move visible to those waiting outside.

Gold's hands were glowing as he held them over the bright pink spiderweb of lines crisscrossing Emma's face. The pink lines were visible on every part of Emma's exposed skin, tracing along the network of veins and arteries. Gold moved backwards from her face and down her arm, until he reached her right hand. He frowned and lowered his head to look more closely at her palm, before straightening slowly.

Gold limped to the door to face the anxiously waiting family, with a troubled looking Whale following closely behind.

"Papa, what's going on with Emma?" Neal had stopped his nervous pacing as soon as his father had exited the room.

Gold came to a halt and placed both hands on the handle of his cane. "It appears that Ms. Swan has had a little accident with pixie dust."

"Pixie dust?" Regina lip curled in obvious disbelief. "How does pixie dust end up doing _that_ to someone?" She gestured towards Emma's room. "It's just a harmless tracking agent".

"I believe that's where the accident part comes in, dearie", Gold's smile was condescending. "It seems that Ms. Swan managed to get some into her bloodstream via a small wound on her palm. Normally that wouldn't have been a problem, but this particular pixie dust was intended to find true love, and unfortunately for Ms. Swan, she happens to be made from it. It's spread throughout her entire system."

"A wound? So it was an intentional attack?" David unconsciously pulled Mary Margaret closer to him, and she in turn clutched tightly at his shirt. Emma's body being overrun by pixie dust sounded like a very bad thing.

Gold shook his head. "That's unlikely to be the case. The injury looked to be self inflicted".

"I think the more pertinent question would be how did she come into contact with pixie dust that was specifically targeted to finding true love." Regina's eyes narrowed and she seemed to be turning over something in her head. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that now, would you Gold?".

"I strongly suggest you stop focusing on how it happened, and work on getting it out of her instead." Whale jumped in before Gold could answer. His expression was grim as he held up the latest MRI scan. "This pixie dust is causing inflammation of Emma's brain tissue. We have her in an induced coma for now, but that's just a temporary measure. Her condition is still deteriorating. That dust has to come out, as I doubt she'll last the night otherwise."

The frightened gasp Henry made had everyone glaring at Whale. Mary Margaret couldn't believe the insensitivity of the man, even as she fought her own fear at his assessment of Emma's condition.

"Mom, you have to help her!" Henry was visibly shaking, as he plucked helplessly at Regina's coat.

Regina wrapped a comforting arm around him, looking rather pale herself. "Henry, healing magic is complicated and not something I have any experience with. I wouldn't want to make things worse." She glanced towards Emma's room, lines of concern etched in her forehead. "Perhaps a stasis spell would be a good idea though".

"A stasis spell?", Gold gave one of his mocking little laughs. "You'd be lucky to have it last 30 seconds with the pixie dust churning away underneath. I expected better from you, your Majesty."

Regina's jaw tightened, but surprisingly she didn't react to the insult. "Can the pixie dust be drawn out with magic?"

"The only magic strong enough to do that would be true love."

"You mean like true love's kiss?" Henry perked up, scrambling out of Regina's protective hold. She reluctantly released him, but continued to hover within touching distance.

"Exactly, boy." Gold did one of his hand flourishes. "The magic in her blood is acting like a magnet for the dust. True love's kiss is the only thing that has a chance of competing with it and giving the dust somewhere else to go."

_True love's kiss._ Mary Margaret couldn't help the small thrill that went through her at the words. Maybe something good will come out of this after all. She knew that Emma was afraid to let Neal back into her heart, but the reassurance of true love would surely help her overcome that fear.

"If the good Doctor is right, we really shouldn't keep Ms. Swan waiting any longer." Gold gestured towards his son. "Bae, if you would like to do the honours".

"Hang on a moment there, crocodile", Hook pushed away from the wall he had been quietly leaning against. "How do we know that _he'_s her true love?"

"Because there's a prophecy about my parents and true love, and the last time I checked, _you_ weren't one of them".

A prophecy? Mary Margaret exchanged a look with David. Prophecies always came true. Emma breaking the curse was living proof of that.

"Henry, apologise now." Regina scolded, placing both her hands firmly on Henry's shoulders. "You do not take that tone with an adult".

Henry's jaw briefly tightened, before he retreated back into Regina's hold and pulled her arm back around him. "I'm sorry." He looked down at the ground and avoided everyone's eyes.

"Actually Hook, why don't you go ahead and try first". Neal moved until he was right in Hook's face, standing toe to toe with him. "If you fail though, I want you to leave town and never come back".

Hook didn't step back or break eye contact. The two men glared at each other for several long seconds, before Hook swallowed heavily, and nodded in acceptance. "Agreed."

"Then by all means, after you", Neal gestured towards Emma.

Hook squared his shoulders and walked into the hospital room. His hand was visibly shaking as he carefully placed it beside Emma's pillow.

Mary Margaret found herself holding her breath, as Hook leaned forward and kissed Emma on the lips. He drew back after a couple of seconds and waited. Nothing happened and his shoulders slumped. Mary Margaret couldn't help but feel pity for Hook as she watched him back away from Emma, and slowly make his way out of the room. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to be in love with someone who didn't return your feelings.

"Hook, I'm sorry", Regina's voice was soft. The obvious sympathy on her face was surprising.

"It was worth a shot", Hook tried to smile, but it was clear his heart wasn't in it.

One of the machines Emma was hooked up to started to beep and Whale hurried over to check it. "Her O2 sats are dropping. That dust needs to come out sooner rather than later."

"Remember our deal, Hook". Neal never took his eyes of the pirate as he walked past him into the hospital room. Hook simply nodded, defeat obvious in his still slumped shoulders.

There was no hesitation on Neal's part when he got to Emma's bedside. He simply bent and kissed her.

"There wasn't a wave?" Henry's voice was worried, as Neal straightened after breaking the kiss.

Mary Margaret grabbed onto Charming, fear churning in her belly. She noticed Regina doing the same to Henry.

"It's not a curse. There won't be a wave." Gold raised his voice slightly. "Just give it a moment, Bae. The pixie dust needs to home in on you".

"I'm not going anywhere", Neal stayed firmly focused on Emma. "C'mon Ems."

They waited in complete silence, aside from the steady beep of the heart monitor. There was no change in Emma though. The bright pink lines continued to glow ominously all over her skin.

"How long is this supposed to take?" Whale glanced worriedly at the pulse oximeter. "Her sats have stabilised for now, but if they drop any further, we're going to be forced to intubate her."

Neal shrugged helplessly. "Should I kiss her again?" He looked back over his shoulder at Gold.

Mary Margaret felt her gut twist again, as she took in the resigned expression on Gold's face.

"Bae", Gold began slowly, like the words itself were hurting him. "Son, if it hasn't worked by now, it's not going to work at all".

"What?" The confusion on Neal's face would have been comical, in less dire circumstances. "But you told me I was her true love. That was the only reason I agreed to let you use magic to help Henry with his mistletoe plan."

"Mistletoe plan?" Mary Margaret pushed away from David. "Are you telling me that my daughter is lying in a hospital bed due to magic you used on her?" She could feel herself shaking in anger.

"The boy came to me", Gold snarled. "He wanted his parents together".

"You will not blame this on _my son_, you vile imp". Regina's voice was filled with utter rage, as she placed herself between Henry and Gold. Magic crackled in the air around them, making Mary Margaret even more nauseous. She could see Hook edging towards the door. "When is Mr. Cassidy due to leave town again?"

Mary Margaret sucked in a breath. Neal was planning on leaving at the end of the month. He intended to wrap up his affairs in New York and then set up a permanent residence in Boston. He'd asked Gold to leave with him, but Mary Margaret was unsure if the pawnbroker had accepted.

"I simply seized an opportunity to provide my son with his happy ending." Gold smiled, seemingly unaffected by the magic stirring his hair. "Something you wouldn't understand dearie, given your penchant for taking them away."

Regina chuckled darkly. "The difference between you and me Gold, is that I would never put anything or anyone above my son's happiness, including _myself_." She stalked forward and stopped inches away from Gold. "Tell me, are you looking forward to being out there, in a world without magic, where you would be nothing but a powerless, crippled old man?"

Mary Margaret glanced at Neal and saw him swallow convulsively. He turned his head towards Emma, and looked like he wanted to be sick.

"Careful, dearie. That almost sounded like a threat". Gold's skin started to take on a yellow scaly tinge.

"Stop it!" Henry shrieked. "We supposed to be helping Emma, not fighting each other."

Everyone froze, various degrees of contrition on their faces.

Regina immediately abandoned her confrontation with Gold. She walked back to Henry, with an arm outstretched in front of her. "Henry, you're right. I'm sorry".

"It's ok Mom." He took her hand and tried to smile, but his chin wobbled. He was obviously fighting back tears. "Gr..Mr Gold is right though. It's my fault. I asked him to help Emma find her true love".

"No, no Henry". Regina wrapped her arms around him and he buried his face in her shoulder. "You're a child. None of this could ever be your fault."

Mary Margaret could feel her own heart breaking as she saw Henry's shoulders shaking with sobs.

"I need you to leave". Neal strode towards his father. "I don't ever want to see you again".

"Bae, you don't mean that." Gold's face crumpled, his anguish clearly visible.

"Emma could die because I believed your lies", Neal shouted, grabbing fistfuls of his own hair. "This was all just another manipulation to make me stay here, all because you were too afraid to leave with me."

"I would never lie to you Bae", Gold pleaded desperately. "Prophecies can sometimes be interpreted in different ways. In this case though, I don't see how it could have been anything other than what it was."

"You did lie to me when you promised to come with me and give up your magic. Instead I grew up alone, without a father."

"Bae please.."

"No! I've given you enough chances to change. Get out, before I do something we will both regret." Neal clenched his fists, breathing heavily.

Gold looked like a frail old man as he turned around and limped out of the room. Neal waited till he was out of sight, before collapsing onto the nearest seat with his head in his hands. "What are we gonna do about Emma? If we don't find her true love...", he trailed off unable to complete the sentence.

"Maybe we can ask Blue to try again?" David said.

Mary Margaret shook her head. "She said there was nothing to heal, as Emma wasn't actually injured apart from that tiny wound on her palm". The Blue Fairy had been one of the first people they had called in to help, but apparently fairy magic only worked on actual physical injuries. As there was no point in her being at the hospital, Mary Margaret had sent Blue back to the town hall to oversee things there. She was only a phone call away if needed though.

"If I may, this prophecy people keep mentioning about Henry's parents sharing true love?" Hook's voice made Mary Margaret start in surprise. She had thought he'd fled when it looked like things were heading for a magical showdown.

"Has everyone forgotten that Henry actually has three parents?"

Mary Margaret's jaw dropped in astonishment. "You can't be serious. Even if you were, Regina and Neal being true loves, is not going to help Emma".

Hook looked at her with what seemed to be pity in his eyes. "I was in fact referring to Emma and Regina".

"What?" Mary Margaret couldn't suppress a burst of hysterical laughter. She blamed the pregnancy hormones for the loss of control. She turned to Regina, expecting to see outrage on her face, but instead the woman looked like she'd seen a ghost. Her usually olive complexion was completely drained of any colour.

"Regina? Tell him how ridiculous he's being".

Regina didn't say a word. She turned haunted eyes in the direction of Emma's room instead.

"You're crazy, Hook", Neal snorted, oblivious to Regina's telling silence. "Or perhaps more accurately drunk out of your mind."

Mary Margaret couldn't even begin to describe what she was feeling at that moment. She thought she was actually going to throw up from the intensity of the emotions. Hadn't Regina taken enough from them already? Fate surely wouldn't be that cruel to them. "No no no no, this can't be happening." Mary Margaret was not even aware that she was speaking out loud.

"Mary Margaret, please. You need to calm down. This isn't good for either you or the baby". David wrapped her up in his arms and she took a deep breath, letting his familiar presence soothe her. David was right. Now was not the time to fall apart. Not when Emma's life was at stake. If Regina could help her, then Mary Margaret didn't care how she did it. They would deal with the consequences afterwards.

She straightened to her full height and stepped out of David's protective hold.

"Regina, are you able to save Emma?"

Regina's eyes darted to her, wide with shock. She wasn't the only one surprised. Neal's jaw snapped shut with an audible click and Hook couldn't help shooting him a smug smile.

"I..." Regina swallowed, seemingly at a loss for words.

"Mom?" Henry's voice was confused as he tilted his head to gaze up at her.

"Oh Henry" Regina shut her eyes, tears leaking from the corners. She inhaled deeply and seemed to be gathering herself. She opened her eyes and met Mary Margaret's gaze. "Yes, I do believe I can save Emma".

"With true love's kiss?". Henry stepped back from Regina, deep furrows marring his brow.

Regina laughed but it came out sounding like a sob. "Yes, with true love's kiss."

"I don't understand". Henry glanced between Regina and Neal, who was standing with an absolutely shell shocked expression on his face. "Mom, I thought you hated Emma".

"I haven't for a long time, Henry." Regina wiped at the corners of her eyes.

Henry stared at her for a moment longer and then his jaw firmed. "Okay." He carefully wrapped his arms around her, like he was afraid she was going to break.

"Okay?" Regina brought her arms up around his back, and hugged him back almost like she couldn't believe that he was real.

"Yes. Okay." Henry pulled back and looked her in the eye. "If you think that you can save Emma, then I believe you, Mom."

"I love you, Henry". Regina cupped his jaw, her eyes shining with tears.

"I love you too, Mom". Henry pulled away and gently pushed her towards Emma's room.

Regina nodded once in acknowledgment, before walking forward. She paused at Emma's bedside and looked down at her.

Mary Margaret leaned heavily against David. She could hardly bear to watch. What if this didn't work? _What if it did work?_ She choked back a helpless sob.

Regina closed her eyes and gently brushed her lips over Emma's. She broke the kiss after a few seconds and straightened, her eyes still shut.

Emma started to glow pink, a shimmer appearing over the surface of her skin. The shimmer resolved itself into tiny grains of pink dust, hovering inches above her skin. Suddenly, as if by some unknown signal, the dust shot towards Regina.

Regina's eyes snapped open and she drew in a shuddering breath as the dust surrounded her. She stood very still and held her arms out, her figure outlined in a glowing pink cloud.

"Mom?" Henry made to move towards her and Neal placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"Everything will be all right Henry. Just stay there". Regina smiled reassuringly at Henry. The cloud surrounding her pulsed briefly for a few seconds, before slowly dissipating into nothing.

"Mom, you did it!" Henry shrugged out of Neal's hold and rushed to Regina, throwing his arms around her middle. "Is Emma going to be ok now? Shouldn't she be awake?"

"Dr Whale?" Regina's voice had it's usual confident snap, but there was a slight tremble in the arms she had around Henry.

Whale glanced up from the readings he was taking. "Induced coma, remember? She's not waking up because of the drugs we have her on. I'd like to keep her under observation tonight, but all going well, we should be able to bring her out of it tomorrow."

"Oh thank God", Mary Margaret sagged against David, the overwhelming relief she felt making her lightheaded.

"Mom, you really are Emma's true love". Henry's voice lilted up in the end, showing his surprise. He released Regina and moved closer to the edge of Emma's bed, to stare down at her, his brow furrowed in thought.

Mary Margaret's whole body tensed and she could feel David's arms tighten in response. She was not ready to deal with that now, or ever really.

"Yes, but she's never going to find that out, Henry." Regina's answer surprised everyone.

Henry whirled back to face her, his mouth opening to ask a question, when Regina waved her hand. Everyone in the room froze in position, their expressions turning curiously blank. A single tear rolled down Regina's cheek as she gently brushed the back of her fingers over Emma's jaw, before she stepped back from the bed and left Henry standing alone.

There was a puff of purple smoke and a book appeared in her hand. Regina opened it and blew gently on the pages. She inhaled deeply as the words wafted upwards, dissolving into mist. Her eyes flashed bright purple and a wave of magic spread outwards from her. The air shimmered briefly around each person in the room, rewriting some memories, and outright erasing others. Regina let out a tortured gasp and the book slid from her fingers, disappearing in a puff of smoke. She staggered and clutched at the wall to steady herself, as her eyes faded back to their normal brown colour.

Movement returned to the room.

"You did it, Henry"! Mary Margaret clasped her hands together as she gazed proudly at her grandson.

Henry just ducked his head. "Emma woke me up with true love's kiss, so it makes sense that I could do the same".

"Except it shouldn't have worked", Gold's voice came from the entrance of the room, remnants of crimson smoke fading around him. "I had to take that into account when I created the spell. It would have hardly been useful if it kept pointing to you, boy"."

"I thought I told you to leave", Neal snapped.

"Bae, I felt someone use a large amount of magic in this area. I had to make sure you were all right."

"Well you've seen me, now get out".

Gold's gaze flickered to Regina for a brief moment, before he nodded. "As you wish, Bae". He disappeared in a puff of crimson smoke.

"Speaking of getting out, this is still an ICU. I'm going to have to ask you all to leave the room." Whale's voice was firm as he pointed to the door. "Visitors will be restricted to family members only, with two maximum in at a time." There were a few token grumbles, but everyone did as he asked, leaving Whale alone in the room to look over Emma.

"Well seeing as Ms. Swan is no longer in immediate danger, it's time we went home Henry. It's getting late." Regina had both her hands in the pockets of her trench coat. She looked exhausted, the harsh hospital lighting emphasising the dark circles around her eyes, and washing out her skin tone

"It's still Emma's week with Henry, Regina". Mary Margaret straightened to her full height. "I think it's best if he came home with us tonight".

"Henry?" Regina ignored Mary Margaret and focused on Henry.

Henry looked between the adults, clearly torn. "I guess I'd better go home with Gram and Gramps", he answered slowly. "Seeing as I'm meant to be with Emma at the moment".

Regina nodded, her face expressionless. "Of course, Henry".

Mary Margaret couldn't help her triumphant smile. She knew that Henry chose them because he was trying to avoid a confrontation, but it was only right that he was with his family tonight.

Henry walked over and hugged Regina. "I'll see you tomorrow, Mom. We can maybe have lunch at Granny's?"

"That would be lovely, Henry" Regina smoothed his hair, before gently disengaging from the hug. "I shall see you then".

Regina placed her hands back in the pockets of her trench coat and walked away from the room alone.

* * *

**TBC**

_Thanks to everyone for all the favourites, follows and reviews. I'm glad you guys are enjoying the story. I had a hard time with this chapter, because it's so dialogue heavy, and I'm really most comfortable writing from Emma's viewpoint, but seeing as she was unconscious that was not to be. Yeah I'm sorry I had to inflict MM's POV on you guys, believe me it was just as hard writing her. I also know that there wasn't much SQ either, but that should change in the third and final chapter :)_


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